Pepita Pesto

In the spirit of zero waste of food, effort, or the funds needed to make this pesto, we encourage you to come up with new ways of using it. At the restaurant it’s served as a sauce for the Carne Asada Burritos (this page), but don’t let that keep you from serving it with grilled steak or chicken, or, yes, pasta.

Makes about 1 cup

About 1½ cups roughly chopped fresh cilantro

About 2 cups roughly chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

6 garlic cloves

1 cup unsalted raw pepitas (pumpkin seeds)

½ teaspoon kosher salt, plus extra to taste

½ cup pure olive oil

Put the cilantro and parsley in a food processor and add the garlic, pepitas, and salt. Pulse for 5 seconds and then scrape down the sides of the bowl. Repeat the pulsing and scraping about 5 more times, until the ingredients are finely minced. While the machine is running, slowly pour the olive oil through the feed tube, processing until the pesto is combined and looks like coarse meal, about 30 seconds, scraping down sides if necessary.

Taste and adjust the seasoning with more salt as needed. Use the pesto immediately or transfer it to an airtight container or glass jar (see Trejo’s Tip) and refrigerate it for up to 3 days.

Creamy Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette

Vegan mayonnaise gives this creamy vinaigrette the body of ranch dressing with the acidity and brightness of a vinaigrette, so you really get the best of both worlds. We use it to dress our kale salad. It would also be great on a simple green salad, served as a sauce alongside seared salmon or grilled chicken, or drizzled on any of our bowls.

Makes about 2 cups

1½ cups chopped fresh cilantro

½ cup vegenaise (Just Mayo is good, too)

Juice of 1 lime

For a creamy-smooth dressing, combine the cilantro, vegenaise, lime juice, and ¼ cup of water in a blender and puree until smooth. For a chunkier vinaigrette, combine everything in a medium bowl and whisk until emulsified (that’s the fancy word for thoroughly mixed so that the juice is suspended evenly throughout the fats). Use immediately or refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

Escabeche-Mint Crema

If you happen to have some extra escabeche in your fridge, use it in this fresh and spicy crema. Otherwise, buy a can or jar of Embasa pickled jalapeños. (It’s not worth cooking a whole batch of escabeche just for the 2 tablespoons needed for this recipe.) I love this with seared fish and on our chicken tikka tacos (this page).

1 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons chopped pickled jalapeños or Escabeche (this page)

1 tablespoon roughly chopped fresh mint leaves

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon kosher salt

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

Put the sour cream, jalapeño, lime juice, mint, cumin, salt, and cayenne in a blender and puree until smooth. Serve immediately or transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Vegan Cashew Crema

You don’t have to be vegan to love this crema. Pureed cashews are so buttery, you’ll swear this is made with dairy.

2 cups raw unsalted cashews

Juice of 1 lime, plus extra to taste

Juice of 1 lemon, plus extra to taste

1½ teaspoons kosher salt, plus extra to taste

Place the cashews in a blender jar and cover them with 1½ cups of water. Set the cashews aside to soak for at least 2 hours or up to overnight. The longer they soak, the softer they’ll get, making for a creamier result.

Pour off the water and add the lime juice, lemon juice, and salt to the cashews. Puree until creamy and smooth. Taste and adjust with more salt, lemon, and/or lime juice if needed. Use immediately or refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

Lime Crema

The zippy acidity in this lime crema makes it particularly good with fried food, which is why we use it to dress the slaw that goes on the fried fish tacos (this page). Zesting the lime with a rasp-style grater (like a Microplane) will make this easy crema even easier.

1 teaspoon finely chopped lime zest

In a small mixing bowl, combine the sour cream, lime zest, lime juice, and salt and mix well. Serve immediately or refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Chipotle Crema

This is one of the easiest, most full-flavored, and most satisfying sauces in this book—and watch out, it’s spicy! Play it safe; start with 4 chipotles, taste, and then add more if you think you can handle it.

2 cups sour cream

4 chipotle chiles from a can of chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, plus 2 tablespoons of the adobo sauce

Juice of 2 limes

2 teaspoons kosher salt

Put the sour cream, chipotles, adobo sauce, lime juice, and salt in a blender and puree until smooth. Serve immediately or transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Cumin Crema

We serve this earthy crema with our sautéed fish tacos (this page), but it’s super-versatile and would also go well with the fried fish tacos (this page) or our chicken tikka tacos (this page).

2 tablespoons ground cumin

In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the sour cream, cumin, and salt until well combined. Use immediately, or refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days

Avocado Crema

Creamy avocado meets tangy sour cream in this cooling crema that you can use on any of our tacos.

2 medium avocados, halved, pitted, and peeled

½ cup sour cream

½ cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro

1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus extra to taste

Combine the avocados, sour cream, cilantro, lime juice, and salt in a blender and puree until smooth. Taste and add more salt or lime juice if desired. Use immediately or store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Orange Crema

We use this to top our tacos, burritos, and bowls made with Blackened Salmon (this page), but it would go well with chicken or shrimp dishes, too. While we typically use fresh juices at the restaurant, orange juice concentrate delivers a lot of flavor without watering down the crema. Mayonnaise adds more acidity to balance out the sweetness of the orange.

½ cup mayonnaise

½ cup orange juice concentrate, thawed

In a medium bowl, combine the sour cream, mayonnaise, and orange juice concentrate and mix well to combine. Use immediately or refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days.